Nepali Police Halt Pro-Tibet Protests, 450 Detained

June 9, 2008

Reuters
June 7, 2008

KATHMANDU (Reuters) - Nepali police used batons to break up a
pro-Tibet rally in Kathmandu on Saturday, detaining at least 450
exiles, police and witnesses said.

Those detained will be freed later on Saturday, a police officer
said. Witnesses said hundreds of refugees, including nuns and monks,
shouting "free Tibet" and "down with China" were held as they tried
to march towards a Chinese visa office.

It was the highest number of refugees detained in a single day since
the exiled Tibetans resumed protests this week after a lull of two
weeks following the devastating earthquake in China.

More than 20,000 Tibetans live in Nepal since fleeing their homeland
after a failed 1959 uprising against Chinese rule.

Nepal considers Tibet part of China, a key aid donor, and does not
allow anti-China activities. However, exiles have been staging
regular protests since the Chinese crackdown in Tibet in March.